> "A delve is when an Adventurer party enters a Dungeon with the sole purpose to kill monsters, gather resources, and - more importantly - leave without ever getting near the Dungeon Core. On the other hand, a raid is when the intention is to reach the core and break it. Believe me, the Dungeons know the difference. Assume all of them can see and hear anything inside their tunnels. They will fight for their lives with fervor greater than any cornered beast. Be prepared."

— Adventurer's Guild field operations manual.

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At the end of my tale, I told the Lord about my commercial partnership with the Baron.

"Worry not," the Lord told me. "I will make things right with Montmour. It won't affect your business relationship."

Like hell it wouldn't sour things for a while. But I rested my case. The shit that was about to fly would make the previous shot look like a fart.

But the Lord's magnanimity came with a price.

"I wish you to help Hector delve into this Dungeon."

"Absolutely not!" Alice instantly snapped as she moved in front of me and glared at the Lord. If we had any guards or knights in the room, they would attack the elf, I was sure of it.

The lord sucked in his irritation and kept a placid exterior. Only the tension in his face revealed her anger.

"Everyone going on this expedition will be under a temple oath. I will make sure no one can harm either George or Hector. We can't afford full submission."

Dungeons were finicky and unpredictable. Unless you dedicated a huge amount of resources to drain the Dungeon mana and starve its energy, the Core could self-detonate at any moment. Sending someone too strong who couldn't counter the detonation would be a recipe for disaster. Sending someone strong enough to say fuck you to the consequences, like Alice, would see the core gone.

That's why the Lord didn't ask Alice to just fetch the Core for Hector. He literally couldn't afford her services or compel her to do anything. Bargaining with the level five hundred elf was harder than convincing a tornado to skip his city. A circle of Weather mages could do the latter.

"That's not the issue! What if they abandon George down there? You know temple contracts cannot suppress self-preservation. What if they TPK? The risk is too big. Your army has veteran Scouts. Use them."

"I'm afraid not even the Oathbreaker debuff is enough deterrence against someone in the expedition selling the Dungeon Core. I can only send people I can trust."

That seemed to be exactly what Alice wanted to hear. Her retort came with the snap of a whip.

"Exactly. Almost anyone would give up their shitty Uncommon or even Rare Classes for the right amount of money. Which is why you should give it up if you cannot secure the Core with a Raid team composed of your own people."

I also didn't want to go. Too little recompense for too much risk. Dungeons were chill about being delved because they profited massively when someone died inside. It could take years of no-fatality delves. But when it sensed it was being raided? The Dungeon would go crazy and pull all the stops.

"What if I promise the next Dungeon to George?" The Lord proposed.

Alice snorted. "It could be centuries before another one shows up! Your grandkids will be dead and it will be up to the acting lord at the time to honor your promise or not."

And I would be dead. That was the only reason for her to be this concerned about "a few centuries".

"Why not develop the new Dungeon?" Josephine asked.

"We can barely keep the one here contained," he admitted. "With the threat of a monster stampede, allowing two Dungeons to coexist will stretch our forces thin. Not to mention the risk of an invasion just to take one of them."

Everyone and their grandma wanted to crack a Dungeon Core.

"Any oaths you make, under the gods or not, become moot once you die," Alice stopped the Lord from digressing much, returning to the previous argument.

The Lord just closed his eyes and lowered his head. "I will order Guard Captain Kara to go with Hector. That is settled in stone."

Alice was still in front of me. She smacked my chest the exact moment I was about to inhale and protest. That was the King of all dick moves. We weren't even dating and the guy had the audacity to throw Kara to the wolves. I mean, Dungeon. The shock caused my breathing to seize.

"The girl is beholden to you," Alice said. "Though the Guard is a defensive force. Why would you send a girl who had no previous combat experience… no live combat experience whatsoever to delve into a Dungeon? You are trying to manipulate George into agreeing. Let me tell you. This mission stinks. Let me give you a better offer."

"No."

Alice was indignant. "I haven't even said anything."

"You are about to offer yourself as a chaperone for my son."

Alice waved a hand. "Dream on!" She got this close to flipping the bird at the Lord.

"I was being sarcastic," he explained. "I know you want the Core for your protege."

"And in return, I will chaperone this fief's heir to delve into the next. I will have the Guild inform me of the next wild Dungeon found, anywhere on the continent."

I was mentally prepared to hear the Lord bounce every one of Alice's arguments back at her.

Which proved neither of them was in the right. Lawful authority or not. Alice wouldn't submit to a temple contract, the Lord wouldn't trust her without one. Even with the best of intentions, people like Lilliane Fade or Clotilde would exploit any loopholes in the temple contract she signed. If they managed to make Alice an Oathbreaker, it was as good as murdering her.

"No. I know I should take the Dungeon for myself but I wish my son would have it. That's final."

Kara would die in the Dungeon. She only had basic weapon training at the Guard because she was a Clerk before the kidnapping incident. If she went into the Dungeon, she would die in the first fight she had against a strong monster. If she refused, the Lord would throw her in an oubliette.

Nobody knew the danger level inside the Dungeon. It could be an eldritch nightmare or a walk in the park. Those Kings who gifted Dungeons to their children? They had the power to enforce their law and secure the Dungeon. Mages to keep the core dormant. And even that wasn't a common occurrence among Royalty.

I tuned out everything as my mind went in circles.

They negotiated back and forth. The Lord wanted a trustworthy party to go with Hector and it was obvious he wanted me to go with his son. Alice sometimes seemed to want to squeeze every copper out of the man, while at others she just wanted to watch him squirm.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Josephine was the "straight man" keeping Alice from going too wild and being a witness to the exchange.

Finally, they reached an agreement for an exorbitant sum. We would visit the temple and make a convoluted contract full of fail-safes and conditional guarantees it was too much for my comprehension. Alice would escort the delving group and secure the island, making sure no third parties interfered with the delving.

Hector, Kara, and I would go with a trusted group of knights sworn to the Lord. The Knights' levels were all above sixty. A respectable level for this city. The Mana levels around the city were too low to spawn strong monsters and level further.

As we went to the temple, Alice explained it to me. My obligations in the delve were to identify threats, fight to the best of my abilities, and never act in a way I believed to be detrimental to Hector's survival or the mission goal. I didn't have to put my life (or my bonds' lives) on the line if I believed the risk was too much.

At my insistence, Kara was under a similar set of directives. Both of us could ditch Hector if we believed the personal risk was too much. The Lord wouldn't punish Kara in any way regardless of the raid's outcome.

Hector had the same directives with one difference; he couldn't give the Knights any orders that brought either Kara or me under mortal threat.

The knights couldn't act in a way we believed to be detrimental to us. Which meant they were literally steel-plated cannon fodder.

Since the delve could take a long amount of time, some civilian porters would also go to take care of our supplies and camp.

The cost of this raid would beggar the city treasure.

It took hours to gather the people involved. Everyone had to be present at the temple and sit in a big room for hours upon hours as everything Alice and the Lord agreed to was put on paper. The System, through the priest, made some minor changes. Once everyone was satisfied, we all signed the contract. The porters could retire and live with their families at high middle-class standards with the payment promised to them.

Though they signed, neither Alice nor the Lord had a chance to become Oathbreakers regardless of what they did.

By the time we left the temple, it was late night. We were invited to stay the night at the castle so we could all depart at first light. We could also ask for any supplies. We each got a fancy potion box with the best potions in the market.

I asked for as many elemental-imbued arrows as they could spare. Also for someone to go and fetch the giant club chests that were ready. I also asked for every piece of adventuring gear in existence. From grappling hooks and hundreds of meters of rope, a barbecue grill that required only MP to cook, to an enchanted bathtub, all the way to a decanter of endless water, an item they didn't have. Once I saw how much room I had in the club-chest, I asked for a barrel of oil and as many spices as they had for sale in the city market.

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Before going to bed, I sat in the solar room next to our bedroom wing with William and Sleepy. Yes, the critters were in the castle, a fact that gave the staff no small amount of grief. I was still nervous; better than before I called Alice but I still needed time to cope with the pressure. It was a lot to process and I always had trouble following these heated, emotion-charged exchanges. The whole day was a rollercoaster.

The door opened a crack. "George?" A delicate but firm voice asked.

I almost freaked out. I knew who it was.

"Enter, Kara."

She walked into the room. Kara wore a modest indoor dress and not her always impeccable uniform.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"No. I was just sorting my thoughts and everything that happened ever since I returned from Baron Montmour's plantation."

She sat next to me and tried to pet Sleepy. The Wolfertinger growled. I gently pushed his head down and she withdrew her hand.

I wanted to talk about many things but found no voice. I couldn't even look at her.

"I heard that Sleepy was wounded?"

"Yeah. A fifteen-meter Basilisk tried to snack on him. The little guy is quite fast in the air but he needs more combat experience."

She gasped. "Is he okay?"

"Yes, but it will take a while to fully heal. The little guy is tough."

Relieved, Kara giggled. "He's not that little anymore."

As if she's seen him that often. Or at all.

"You have a point. I swear he can eat twice his body weight a day if I let him."

"Monsters grow really fast. How big will he get?"

"Did you see the head of Sleepy's father on display?"

"No, I didn't. I thought it wasn't proper to wander the castle."

"The size of a warhorse. I think I can ride him when he becomes an adult. Most likely not, though. Saddles for flying creatures are hard to make, and Sleepy is rather unique in his body composition. See how his wings fold? No room for a person here. I want him to be a skirmisher, while William here is the one who will keep our enemies busy. I still need two more bonds but it is hard to find a good monster."

Though it was a huge leap of trust to talk about my features like that, I got no reaction. Kara was spacing out. She had something on her mind and it wasn't about work.

"I can't imagine. I'm sorry. Monsters, to me… are incomprehensible creatures, beyond reason. And yet…" her gaze fell on Sleepy. "It seems just like a dog bunny pup."

"I understand what you mean. Sleepy here was a chain of lucky events and a lot of effort. We train every day. Though he doesn't have the same belligerent nature as his siblings," a wry chuckle escaped my lips. "Boy, when I entered that cave, they came right at me!"

I retold the tale of the Wolfertinger cave, with just some embellishments.

"What I wish to say, George," she paused to summon courage. "Is that I am sorry. You had nothing to do with what Alice did. And then… things snowballed from there."

Was she sorry for the situation or was that an apology? I couldn't read Kara at all.

I brushed a hand over Sleepy's wings. "I am sorry you got dragged onto this with me. It wasn't fair but…"

She glanced over her shoulder, then leaned closer, "I am aware that the Lord used me as leverage to convince you to come along. I figured as much when Guild Master Alice, of all people, set me apart from the knights. Knights, imagine that."

"You are more important to the city than those knights now," I said without a clue about the implications of my words.

"Important only to the city?" She asked in a voice I seldom heard women use. It carried something between curiosity and teasing.

"Of course not!" I retorted on the spot. She brightened up but sixteen-years-old me had no idea why.

"You are very important to the people and definitely to your family!" I said with a bright smile.

"Oh," her building excitement vanished.

Foot, meet mouth. The conversation died. Alice examined the room's decorations, the curtains, and tapestries, then took a deep breath.

"Why would the Lord think I could be used as leverage against you?" She sounded angry and confused.

"Because you matter to me. You are one of the few people in this whole city that I care about."

And that's the truth. While my duty as a Scout was to the city in general, I didn't have a rapport with most people. They were basically faceless to me.

Her jaw dropped. I was so confused. Why was she going from one extreme to the opposite so fast?

She closed her mouth with a snap of teeth. Then, she seemed like she was about to fight a monster.

"When we were on the stage, you know when I was receiving my promotion, why did Lord Hector keep glancing back at you?" She asked in a whisper as if requesting for me to share a big secret.

Wait for a second. Even though I was young and completely inexperienced with women, having only Alice and the Guild receptionists as models, I knew I couldn't talk about what Hector did on that stage. This was a trap deadlier than any a Dungeon could craft. I smelled danger. Even though the only advice I heard about these situations from the men's side came from dirty smelly drunk Adventurers.

Kara eagerly awaited the answer. This could make or break whatever we had going on.

The real question I had to answer was, did I want to try and get into a relationship? Right on the eve of a deadly delve into the unknown? We stood frozen for a long while.

Everybody and their aunts were hinting at something between us. Was it there? What did the…

Kara put her hand over mine. William winked his square eye at me. Hard to say whether the Tityron was onto something or if it was just a one-sided blink.

"When I got my promotion," she confided. "The System said a few things. I might be committing blasphemy, but I thought the System was quite rude."

I nodded. "I can relate. I got a few achievements and I didn't think a God would be so candid."

She frowned. "Candid? I don't think it was candid."

I gave it some thought and then made my point. "The System told me they can see everything. How would they award Class experience and achievements otherwise? I think the System God was once a person. The way the messages were written felt like an old friend. It said some harsh things to me too. But I don't think it was in a mean way. It was just the truth."

"It told me it was absurd that I was defending a guy I had just dumped." She confessed in an outburst. "Then it raised my Class rarity by two whole steps!"

Damn. Clerk was Uncommon. She became Very Rare? Bloody hell. Kara was more valuable than all the knights who signed up to go on this expedition. She just needed levels and real-life experience to bloom.

"Wasn't they just complimenting your work ethic? The System rewards fairly."

Or so most people said. A few vocal detractors claimed they were screwed by the System but their claims usually were just attempts at redirecting blame.

"It's not it!" She protested. "I don't feel like I deserve it."

"You do," I said with a soft voice. She squeezed my hand. "Wouldn't you do the same if it was anyone else?"

Another sentence that backfired. I was trying to imply she was fair in her judgment but Kara took it the other way.

"No. I think not!" She admitted with a shocked face. Kara bit her lower lip and looked at me with trembling eyes. Then she burst. "Not like.. that! No! I only did what I did because I knew you were a Guild Officer and have special legal privilegium regarding who may prosecute you."

Even someone as socially handicapped as me could tell she was lying.

"Would you be as motivated if it was another privileged individual? Like an officer of the Merchant's Guild?"

She shrunk in her seat. "Yes?" No sincerity there.

Why was she using that intonation?

"George, I…" a deep breath followed by a hundred-eighty turn. She schooled her expression and became detached. "I wish you good luck in the delve."

Kara stood up abruptly and left the room. I understood nothing.